Tragic Shrewsbury river safety campaigner abused by young swimmers
A Shrewsbury widow whose husband drowned in the Severn was verbally abused by a group of children after she warned them of the dangers of jumping into the river.
Kirsty Walsh, whose husband Shane died in the water last year, saw the children jumping into Shrewsbury’s weir on Monday night.
She said: “I asked them to get out of the water but was greeted by verbal abuse. They just think I’m spoiling their fun but they don’t understand how quickly things change.”
Mrs Walsh said the weir is not as “innocent” as it looks.
She added: “It doesn’t look like a killer but it is not somewhere people should be playing.
“I can take the verbal abuse because I went home knowing that I have potentially saved a life. If I went home that night and found out someone had drowned the next day, that would be on me."
Shrewsbury Police were called but the children had left before officers arrived.
“I’d say they were about nine, so very, very young,” Mrs Walsh added.
“They did have one older boy with them but I went over there to ask them to get out. They said they were doing no harm so I told them about Shane and that the water might look still but underneath it’s completely different.
"They weren’t very happy with me and did verbally abuse and insult me but where I can spread the message of river safety, I will.”
She tweeted:
Previously she had posted:
Mrs Walsh is now encouraging schools to complete the West Mercia Search and Rescue free online river safety course with their pupils.
She had once again joined the West Mercia Search and Rescue team to patrol the River Severn in the town over the bank holiday weekend.
“It was obviously very, very busy because of the Bank Holiday and there had also been football on,” she said.
“But it was very positive and I think we definitely got the message of river safety out there.”
The mother-of-two steered a group of revellers away from the river where Shane, 29, died.
“They were at Mardol Quay Gardens at the same place Shane fell in,” she said.
More information:
“We went across and got them on the right side of the fence, away from danger. They said they were fine and they weren’t jumping in but I spoke to them about Shane and said he was out on a Saturday night when he fell in and drowned.
“They were really shocked by it. They didn’t realise it’s as easy as a simple accident and it just happens. They were really sorry and wanted me to give them more information, which is great.”
The team also aided two people in a dinghy which was deflating, a man and a woman in danger at the Welsh Bridge, a group of intoxicated men on the bank of the river and a man sitting on the edge of a step.
Mrs Walsh added: “As lovely as the water is, it is still very cold – even on a hot day, and your body will go into shock when you get in. Also, if you swallow any water it’s going to make you very, very ill.”
